John piper born again series

Are sinners “born again” as regenerated people before they believe in Christ or even have a single, God-fearing thought? What about Cornelius, the God-fearing Gentile in Acts 10 who had developed a long-standing reputation for being a devout man who feared God? Are we to assume he was born again years before hearing the gospel?

John Piper’s beliefs on being born again prior to faith leave him no “wiggle room” on the issue. For example he writes, “If you have one whisper of genuine desire for God in your heart, it is the work of God and the triumph of grace.” [1]

What sort of grace is Piper talking about? He answers that a few sentences later. “The centrality of God in saving grace is seen in God’s sovereign act of begetting his own children. We did not choose to be begotten any more than we chose to be raised from the dead or called or created. We were born “not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John –13).” [2]

Piper’s questionable avoidance of quoting John

The careful reader will note how Piper attempts to quote John to smuggle in the idea that one must first become a “begotten” child of God before one can even believe in God, much less “have one whisper of genuine desire for God in your heart.” However the idea that people become “born again” (i.e. begotten) children of God before they believe in Christ, can only be held at the expense of ignoring the preceding verse in John Suspiciously this is exactly what Piper does.

When verse 13 is read in the context of verse 12 it becomes clear being “begotten” or (regenerated, born again) as a child of God is in response to people’s prior receiving and believing in the Son. We read, “But toall who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”[3]

Lets be clear about what John is saying. God did not give people “the right to become children of God” so that they can receive and believe. God gives them that right because

When Jesus said to Nicodemus, ‘You must be born again’, the devout and learned religious leader was unsure what Jesus meant. It would seem nothing has changed. Today ‘born again Christians’ fill churches that are seen as ineffectual at best, and even characterised by the ‘mosaic’ generation as ‘unchristian’.

The term ‘born again’ has been devalued both in society and in the church. Those claiming to be ‘born again’ live lives that are indistinguishable from those who don’t; they sin the same, embrace injustice the same, covet the same, do almost everything the same.

Being ‘born again’ is now defined by what people say they believe. The New Testament however defines Christians very differently.

“When Jesus said to Nicodemus, “You must be born again” (John ), he was not sharing interesting and unimportant information. He was leading him to eternal life… If he does that for you (or if he already has), then you are (or you will be) truly, invincibly, finally alive.” John Piper

This relatively short book is John Piper’s response to the misuse of the language of regeneration in North America. Where “born again” is used as a label for professing evangelicals—or even those who simply report making some sort of commitment to Christ at some point in their lives—Piper believes, “[t]he term born again is desecrated” (p. 16). The matter is serious because this loose and unbiblical use of the language of rebirth leads those observing the church to “defile the new birth with the worldliness of unregenerate, professing Christians” (p. 15). If all who claim some sort of commitment to Christ are born again, it appears that being born again does not have the radical effect on life that the NT claims, for such professing Christians are regularly shown in surveys to be prone to the same sinful pursuits and habits as the world. Piper therefore sets out to provide a biblical definition of “born again” and its associated terminology.

Christians outside America may not have experienced quite the same misuse of language. They should be thankful, nevertheless, that circumstances in America have drawn forth this systematic treatment of a vital biblical theme. It certainly appears to this reviewer that confusion or simply ignorance on this topic is widespread in evangelical circles. It would be tempting to say that a serious study of the Bible’s teaching on new birth is timely, if it were not for the fact that it seems somewhat overdue!

Piper tackles the theme with his customarily thorough and systematic approach, starting with definition (“What is the new birth?”), moving through our need (“Why must we be born again?”), God’s action (“How does the new birth come about?”), the result (“What are the effects of the new birth?”), and the resulting imperative (“How can we help others be born again?”). Each question is tackled in a